Reverse the ban on SouthBARK Animal Rescue from the Mobile County Shelter

Despite saving nearly 1,500 dogs from the Mobile County Animal Shelter and encouraging hundreds of direct shelter adoptions over the past two years, SouthBARK has been banned from pulling dogs due to “repeated incidents disruptive of shelter operations.”

Although we have made numerous pleas to both the shelter and county officials for more clarity, they have ignored our requests and simply removed us as a “placement partner.” They have also dismissed other rescue groups requests to have a round table discussion to address the issues and come to a compromise.

We have learned that the shelter does not like that we use the words “kill” and “death” in our communications. We have also heard that the shelter is frustrated that SouthBARK networks the county’s dogs. Although this process is vital to finding homes for deserving dogs, it evidently results in an unsatisfactory number of phone calls to the shelter about those dogs.

Sadly, the shelter has taken the position that these inquires require too much of their time. The decision to ban SouthBARK will effectively seal the fate of the dogs who are now laying in concrete kennels waiting for us to post their pictures on the internet, waiting for us to find someone willing to take a chance on them, waiting for us to walk in the front door to take them to a better place (and eventually a loving home).

As volunteers who have successfully facilitated a large part of the shelter’s mandate over the past two years, we believe we deserve more answers. As a supporter of SouthBARK, and likely a taxpayer funding the shelter, we imagine you do too.

If so, please feel free to contact those responsible for this decision so that we can hopefully gain the explanations we all deserve. Our hope all along has been to work in a professional and collaborative fashion with the shelter. It’s both unfortunate and confusing that we continue to be treated as adversaries.

Please sign this petition and contact Mobile County President Connie Hudson to express your concerns.

I just signed the following petition addressed to: Mobile County, Alabama Administration.

----------------Reverse the ban on SouthBARK Animal Rescue from the Mobile County Shelter

SouthBARK Animal Rescue is the most prolific rescue the county shelter has. In two short years, they have saved almost 1,500 animals from euthanasia. Banning them from rescuing dogs and cats from their facility does nothing but seal the fate of the pets on death row that are awaiting rescue. ----------------